A group focused on enhancing the food and agribusiness industry in South-East Queensland has launched a new-look pathway to help businesses grow.
The Food and Agribusiness Network has unveiled Grow National, to offer start-ups and established businesses practical and actionable advice on a range of topics.
FAN CEO Nicole McNaughton said the program would be of great benefit.
“On the back of the success we had when we ran a regional food innovation accelerator program called Grow Coastal, we realised there was a much larger need by many of our established members in being able to take their business to the next stage, which includes new distribution pathways, new product development and investment attraction,” she said.
“As a result of our research, and the feedback we received from Grow Coastal, we are delighted to unveil this new program that will cater for start-ups and scale-ups – leveraging a place-based approach to drive innovation and growth.
“The overall program consists of a one-day fundamentals workshop for businesses in the start-up phase and a 10-week intensive program designed for established food, beverage and agribusinesses who are looking to scale their distribution, production and market access.”
FAN said South-East Queensland was quickly gaining a reputation for being one of the most dynamic locations for new food and agribusiness investment in Australia.
They said recent figures estimated the food and agribusiness industry on the Sunshine Coast is valued at more than $1 billion.
They said the results from the Grow Coastal Food Innovation Program, which ran from 2017 to 2019, resulted in 37 local businesses and 54 co-founders (70 per cent female) being assisted, 51 new jobs (147 per cent growth) created, $2,935,000 in new capital invested, revenue growth of 21 per cent, and customer growth of 121 per cent.
Expanding this program under the banner of Grow National, FAN intends to ensure as many of their members are ready to leverage the opportunities that will become available via the Buy Queensland 2032 procurement for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics and Australia’s first collaborative food and beverage manufacturing facility, Turbine, which is set to be built on the Sunshine Coast.
The program will cater to about 45 participants in the first year with spaces expected to go quickly. To find out how to apply or for more information go to Grow National.
Like stories about Sunshine Coast people doing great things? Help us deliver more by registering for our FREE daily news feed. All it requires is your name and email at the bottom of this article.
